To be paranoid helps fight the virus of scams

Of course, we are not talking about legal money. We will come up with all kinds of scams and shams, even pretending they are lawful, or wrapping them it some illogical justification, all for own gain and benefit.

We will steal anything, bribe our way to wealth, cover up corruption without losing a moment’s sleep, rob people blind through dubious costs of service, and so the lists simply go on.

And this is not unique to South Africa; as the Panama leak confirms, corruption is rife throughout the world because the love of money simply remains the root of all evil.

It is actually amazing how creative we have become when it comes to our scams. No really, we are quite creative, to such an extent that we have to come up with all kinds of weird and wacky ways of preventing scams.

It is just a pity we don’t harness such creativity to do something good and productive in this country.

These days to scam someone has become the epitome of entrepreneurship. If I consider the effort one needs to put in to actually scam someone, then I’m already tired.

I am now thinking of the latest scam doing the rounds, in which users receive a text message saying a case has been opened against them by the police.

People who receive this message fall victim to fraudsters once they reply to it and, in some cases, have money extorted from them.

Just as an update, victims receive a SMS stating a SAPS case has been opened against them and that they have to contact a certain constable.

After they have responded to the message, they will be informed that a warrant of arrest has been issued for a traffic fine and that they need to pay a certain amount.

An FNB or an Absa account number will even be given, into which, it is claimed, they must deposit the money.

Come on, that is inventive! And some people do respond, especially if their actions are already dubious, thus bordering on the criminal.

I was also a target of a scam, phishing to be exact, but because I live in South Africa, my ingrained paranoia and being suspicious of everything helped me to steer clear of the dangerous waters.

What happened was is that I advertised to sell a certain product on a online trading platform.

How the scam works is that you will receive an e-mail from a potential buyer, but the buyer is not willing to meet with you, because they are somewhere offshore. They are, however, willing to make a payment through a reputable payment portal.

They are even willing to pay extra! Why? Because they expect you to courier the goods!

But, of course, the payment will never be made, even though you will receive what looks like an official document to say all is order in terms of the payment.

The payment, allegedly, cannot be released until the goods are couriered. And so the scam comes to fruition.

Several years ago we reported how criminals resorted to stealing WhatsApp accounts and asking people’s friends and family members for money. Nothing is sacred from the grubby hands of the scam artist.

Or how about the ant remover scam? Yes, people would arrive at your house, posing as ant-removers, offering their services and then immediately start to treat your garden with a certain fertilizer.

When they’re done fertilizing your garden, they suddenly hand you a bill.

They demand the cash immediately and become aggressive in the process.

Indeed, we have become very creative in this country. We are definitely not willing to work for honest pay, but we will use all our energy to embezzle, commit fraud, swindle and deceive.

The SAPS keeps on warning people about the dangers of phishing, which is is an email-based attack in which a malicious email is sent to you with the purpose of leading you to disclose sensitive information about yourself or the SAPS.

Indeed, scams abound in this country. Some are quite obvious, like Nkandla and the E-tolls, and others are far more subtle and devious.

Problem is, scams are like computer viruses – they keep evolving, becoming nastier and more sinister.

We, therefore, need to remain alert, aware and definitely paranoid.